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Glaus named AL Player of the Week

Glaus named AL Player of the Week

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By Conor Nicholl
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MLB.com |

Buoyed by a tremendous week, Troy Glaus may be the American League's best hitter this season. Bothered by a bone spur, the Blue Jays' third baseman missed 14 games from April 13-27, but hasn't missed a beat since returning from the disabled list.

In fact, Glaus was AL's top player last week. The American League's winner of the Bank of America Player of the Week award, Glaus hit .400 (10-for-25) with a .960 slugging percentage, two doubles, four homers and seven RBIs.

"I've been in the cage trying to get [my swing] back," Glaus said. "We're putting our time in ... and are trying to get it right, trying to get the timing and the speed of the game back to normal [after the injury]."

In his first three games back, Glaus hit .500 (4-for-8) with one homer and four RBIs in a three-game series against the Rangers, including a homer and two RBIs last Monday. Then, he exploded against the Indians, scorching Cleveland pitching for two homers, two doubles and six hits in 13 at-bats.

One of the homers came off the Indians' C.C. Sabathia, and coupled with jacks by Aaron Hill and Alex Rios, it gave the team three home runs in the first inning off the Cleveland ace.

"I came out feeling pretty good," Sabathia said. "I was throwing the ball where I wanted, and they hit some good pitches. You've got to give them credit. They did a pretty good job of putting the bat on the ball in that first inning."

Glaus has done a pretty good job with the bat all season. Before the injury, Glaus -- who has never hit above .284 in any season -- was batting .333 with a .625 slugging percentage. After last week's outburst, Glaus is hitting .352 with a .485 on-base percentage, and is slugging .751 in 2007.

He doesn't have enough at-bats to qualify for the batting title, but all three numbers would rank in the top three in the American League. He's on pace for the best numbers of his All-Star career, and could eclipse 30 homers for the sixth time.

Conor Nicholl is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.